Our annual conference has become a must-attend event for commercial leaders in hospitality, providing cutting-edge strategies, in-depth discussions, and networking. However, we know that not everyone can travel to a single location. That’s why we are launching these focused, local Commercial Strategy Forums—mini-versions of the main conference —tailored to the specific challenges and opportunities in each local market.
We are particularly excited to expand our presence into Lisbon and Athens, two dynamic markets. We have already secured some great speakers with more to come. We can’t wait to connect with local industry leaders in these local markets - and more cities will be announced later.
Through these forums,our goal is to provide a platform for sharing best practices, learning, collaboration, and innovation—ensuring that commercial professionals across Europe will share best practices, get updates on latest trends and strategies to drive business success.
We look forward to welcoming you to an upcoming HSMAI Europe Commercial Strategy Forum near you!
Best regards,
Ingunn Hofseth,
President & CEO, HSMAI Europe
Our industry is global and so are we.
WE ARE A COMMUNITY
We work together, we play together and find lifelong friendships and partnerships together. We are more than a group of people with common interests. People feel like they belong.
WE PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES TO GROW
We create arenas for people to shine whether they are teaching or learning the skills to grow businesses in our industry.
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP IN PRACTICE
We aim to future proof people’s approach to hospitality. We see what is coming next, we get the right people together to create a vision and start working.
Director, EMEA
Plusgrade
Hotelinsider & HBIS
Mediterranean Markets
The Hotels Network
Consultant
Brown Hotels Greece
Programmes
Swiss Alpine Center
Conventus Consultants
Founder & CIO
ABP Invest
Grivalia Hospitality
HSMAI Americas & HSMAI Global
Electra Hotels & Resorts
Ella Resorts
President, IAPCO
CEO, AFEA Congress
Conventus Consultants
HBIS SA
HSMAI Region Europe
Lighthouse
Lighthouse
WebHotelier
Revitup
Revitup
and thought leadership
We’ll be examining this from multiple perspectives, including MICE marketing & sales, the RFP process, distribution networks, yield management, sustainability, training, and data analysis.
This workshop will be moderated by Mark Struik and Thijs Peters, Partners at Conventus Consultants.
15:10 – 17:25
Workshop: Designing Leverage of MICE Potential in the Business Mix
In addition to his role at ABP Invest, Thanos is a frequent guest on major financial media outlets such as BBC, Bloomberg, and CNBC. He is also a sought-after keynote speaker and moderator at investment conferences. Thanos holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation and is a member of the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House). He earned his MSc in Economics from Birkbeck College, University of London. He is originally from Athens and he has resided in London for over 35 years.
This session will be moderated by:
Dimitris Manikis, President EMEA at Wyndham Hotels & Resorts and Member of the HSMAI Europe Board of Directors
Panelists:
- Panagiotis (Panos) Almyrantis, Chief Growth & Commercial Officer Ella Resorts & President European Hotel Managers Association (EHMA)
- Sissi Lignou, President at IAPCO, President at HAPCO & DES and President & CEO at AFEA Congresses
- George Spyropoulos, COO at Electra Hotels & Resorts
- Natalia Strafti, CEO at Grivalia Hospitality
- Dr. John Fotis, Group General Manager at webhotelier
Over the course of the day we will address the most important issues facing commercial leaders. The different sessions will take place two times so you can attend two in total.
**Please note, the MICE Workshop will last for 2 hours 15 minutes and will only take place once.
15:10 – 16:00
Roundtable Discussions (Session 1)
Roundtable 1:
Winning the Booking Battle: Effective strategies to reinforce direct bookings. By Evgenios Petoumenos, Head of Growth & Affinity Partnerships at Wallbid
Roundtable 2:
Achieving Commercial Success with Data-Driven Decision. By Dimitrios Karypidis, CEO & Founder HBIS SA
Roundtable 3:
Total Revenue Playbook: Best Practices and Winning Strategies. By Katerina Fousteri, Business Development Manager, EMEA - Business Intelligence at Lighthouse
Roundtable 4:
Revenue Management and Marketing: Maximizing Revenue Through Synergy. By George Ergazakis, CEO and Minas E. Liapakis, Chief Growth Officer at Revitup
Roundtable 5:
AI in Action: What Hotels Are Really Doing to Boost the Direct Channel. By Elena Klouda, Market Director, Mediterranean Markets at The Hotels Network
Roundtable 6:
Cross-Sector Strategies to Grow Ancillary Revenue. By Nikos Giokas, Business Development Director, EMEA – Hospitality Ancillaries, Plusgrade
Roundtable Discussions (Session 2)
2. Revenue management meets Embedded Insurance: The new standard in room pricing. By Evgenios Petoumenos, Head of Growth & Affinity Partnerships at Wallbid
4. Guess Who? AI Already Knows – And Your Hotel Website Just Got Smarter. By Elena Klouda, Market Director, Mediterranean Markets at The Hotels Network
5. The Power of Bidding. By Nikos Giokas, Business Development Director, EMEA – Hospitality Ancillaries at Plusgrade
6. Synergistic Revenue Growth: Revenue Management & Marketing for Greek Resorts. By George Ergazakis, CEO at Revitup
We are continuously working to become stronger, more competent, and better at anticipating people’s needs and wishes, so that we can create products and services that provide real value. When we master our skill, we create experiences that deeply affect people and create memories for a lifetime.
HSMAI celebrates the skills and efforts of people in our industry. We work hard to make people want to stay in hospitality by raising the status of an industry that we care deeply about.
for Success
Now is the perfect time to become a member and save on our upcoming forum! To celebrate our debut forum in Greece, we are offering an exclusive, one-time opportunity for our valued hotelier HSMAI Europe members: Attend the forum completely FREE!
The forum ticket includes:
✔ A full-day educational program
✔ Multiple coffee breaks
✔ Lunch
✔ Food and drinks at the networking evening
✔ Covers 1 hotel and 3 people
✔ More Savings – If your hotel registers three people, your savings could exceed the €960 membership fee on forum registrations alone!
✔ Complimentary Educational & Networking Events – Get 4 exclusive in-person or virtual meetings per year for free included in the membership.
✔ Discounted Certifications Rate – Instantly save on registration.
✔ Priority Networking – VIP access to members-only events and hospitality industry networking opportunities.
✔ Exclusive Industry Insights – Access top-tier educational resources, online courses & reports for free.
💬 Act Now! This offer is only available for a limited time. Secure your membership and start benefiting immediately!
